r.i.p sol lewitt

i was surprised to read today in the new york times that one of my favorite artists, sol lewitt, had died this month.

although, to be frank, i can't be sure that i knew whether he was still living before reading the article.

much of lewitt's art consists of wall drawings, in which he provides a set of instructions that are carried out by others. although this has met criticism, i have always found the results to be transcendent.

i first discovered lewitt at a retrospective at the san francisco moma many years ago. my mind responds strongly to patterns, to geometry, to mathematical ideas, and lewitt's pieces offered all three, while still being "art." i like looking at art, but i like the visceral feeling i get when a piece makes sense to me, and lewitt's work always made perfect sense.

the dia:beacon, a beautiful art space in the hudson valley is doing a show of 14 of lewitt's wall drawings through sept. 10. i'm going to make sure i get there when i'm in new york this summer. not only is dia:beacon one of my favorite gallery/museums in the world - with its sparse unpretentious presentation and the highest percentage of pieces that "make sense" to me - it has many sculptures by my other favorite artist richard serra.